South African anti-apartheid author Andre Brink dies
JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) – South African anti-apartheid writer Andre Brink, 79, died on Friday after suffering a blood clot while on a plane to Cape Town from a Belgian University where he was collecting an honorary doctorate, local media said.
Modi faces Delhi election defeat in first vote setback: exit polls
NEW DELHI (Reuters) – Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi faces his first state election defeat since sweeping to power last year, according to exit polls on Saturday which showed a resurgent anti-corruption party on track to win a majority in New Delh…
Syria death toll now exceeds 210,000: rights group
AMMAN (Reuters) – The death toll after nearly four years of civil war in Syria has risen to 210,060, nearly half of them civilians, but the real figure is probably much higher, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said on Saturday.
U.S.-led forces launch 26 air strikes in Syria, Iraq: U.S. military
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S.-led forces launched 15 air strikes against Islamic State in Iraq and 11 in Syria, the U.S. military said on Saturday, adding that nine targets in Syria centered around the border city of Kobani that was recaptured from the m…
Merkel rules out arming Ukraine government but unsure peace push will work
MUNICH (Reuters) – Germany’s Angela Merkel on Saturday ruled out sending weapons to the Ukrainian government to fight pro-Russian separatists but said there was no guarantee that her latest peace initiative with French President Francois Hollande would…
Germany, Ukraine, U.S. begin meeting to discuss Ukrainian peace plan
MUNICH (Reuters) – The leaders of Germany and Ukraine, and U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, began a three-way meeting on the sidelines of a security conference in Munich on Saturday to discuss a peace plan for eastern Ukraine.
Nigeria’s ‘disgrace’ that neighbors must take on Boko Haram: Buhari
(This Feb 6 story fixes typo in Buhari’s first name in lead)
Turkish spymaster Fidan quits to contest parliamentary election: sources
ANKARA (Reuters) – The head of Turkey’s intelligence service, Hakan Fidan, one of President Tayyip Erdogan’s closest confidants, has resigned to run in a parliamentary election in June, two senior Turkish officials said on Saturday.
North Korea test-fires new anti-ship cruise missile
SEOUL (Reuters) – North Korea has test-fired a new anti-ship cruise missile, images released by state media on Saturday showed, demonstrating the increased capability of the secretive state’s outdated navy.
Afghan families flee persecution in Pakistan after school attack: IOM
KABUL (Reuters) – Thousands of Afghan families are fleeing Pakistan to escape harassment after a deadly Taliban attack on a school in Peshawar last December, the head of the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in Afghanistan said on Saturday…
